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“I bought this when I was away on vacation for a friend who loves peach anything… Preserves, juices, etc. Thinking I would hold it until her birthday, it has been sitting in my tea cabinet...”
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“This is nice! I’ve never had green rooibos before, but I think I like it better than rooibos. It doesn’t have a lot of that rooibos flavor, which makes it much better for fruit flavoring.”
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“First experience with a green rooibos here…I think I like it, but the fruit flavors are so strong it’s a bit hard to tell what’s what. Product name notwithstanding, the blend...”
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6 Tasting Notes

I bought this when I was away on vacation for a friend who loves peach anything… Preserves, juices, etc. Thinking I would hold it until her birthday, it has been sitting in my tea cabinet amid my teas so I know where it is when her birthday comes around.

Today, on a whim, I decided to try a sample of this tea. Hubby and I can’t stand anything with artificial peach flavoring, but how could I give her something untested?!?!

To my surprise we both found this tea to be much nicer than we expected. The dry leaf is light in fragrance, but peach is present. Steeped, the flavor comes out a little stronger, but it’s not overwhelming and more realistic than most peach flavored candies, etc. Hubby actually liked this one a bit more than I did and he usually won’t go near anything peach flavored.

This would be a nice one to get and keep around for evenings when we want tea without the caffeine. My girlfriend will love it!! But might not like my introducing her to something she will want to buy more of ;)

Tea is what brews from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. The leaves can be treated in a way that includes oxidation, creating black tea, or else in a different way that does not, creating green tea (or, of course, in any of a few other ways as well).

Any time that one steeps something not from the Camellia sinensis plant one gets a tisane, more commonly known as herbal tea. Some herbal teas are comprised of cheap plant parts whose only purpose is to hold the myriad artificial flavorings that make them taste so yummy. However, there are also very many species of flora that, though not related to Camellia sinensis, create legitimate brewed beverages in their own rights. Principle among these are hibiscus, chamomile, rooibos, and yerba mate. (The latter, in fact, is even naturally caffeinated, an extremely rare distinction among tisanes.)

Rooibos, naturally non-caffeinated, comes from the leaves of the Aspalathus linearis plant, a legume native to South Africa. The word “rooibos” comes from the Afrikaans for “red bush”, and its beverage is also known as “red tea” for, of course, its red color. So imagine my surprise to read that I was drinking a “green rooibos”. Surely, unless we are describing Christmas decor, this must be a contradiction, either a silly error or a cheap marketing ploy.

No, not at all, in fact. It turns out that what gives standard rooibos its red color is the oxidation that it undergoes during treatment – the same thing that gives black tea its black color. Green rooibos leaves are not oxidized. Avoiding oxidation “results in a grassy, naturally sweet flavor and a lower tannin content,” as The Spice & Tea Exchange tells me, and boy is that ever so.

The Bonita Peach Rooibos Tea has the dual benefits of being an authentic green rooibos tea and chock full of some excellent natural flavoring, both at the same time. Observing the dry leaves, one enjoys a complete medley of colors with delightful, almost wood-like tones. The ingredients present as straight little sticks of light green, brown, yellow, orange, tan, and maroon. They fall together in patterns of little square clusters such that, while still packed tight in the bag, they look like the floor of the the Boston Celtics’s home court before (or after?) a paint job. Taking in the leaves’ aroma, one can smell the peach right away, with a mere wisp of spices and herbs. It is rich, sensual, sweet. If the leaves’ colors belong to autumn, then the scent belong right in the heat of August on a hot, lazy day, the kind of day on which one can expect to find oneself biting into a ripe peach and chewing on the soft flesh as the strong, sugary juice allocates itself between one’s throat and one’s chin.

The tisane brews into a light, golden orange liquid, rich and suave. The aroma is also rich, smooth, a succinct combination of sweetness and spice. Or perhaps more herbs than spice in this case; the orange peel and the floral hints are unmistakeable, and of course the peach is hardly away in hiding. Sipping it brings back a wonderful memory. In many sushi houses – including, at least, the one where I grew up – along with the check come sucking candies, and not just any ol’ sucking candies but ones absolutely packed full of the most perfumey peach syrup on earth. Well, take the intensity level down to normal, and there you have the initial layer of flavor of this herbal tea. As it hits the back of the tongue one gets a complex floral note balanced by both the sweetness and the rooibos itself, which is finally emerging from obscurity into a more visible role.

Those who require caffeine in the morning will probably want to stick with Camellia sinensis or yerba mate (or coffee). But otherwise, the Bonita Peach Rooibos Tea fits in nicely at any time of the day. The flavors are lively, the body is smooth, and the sweetness is a real peach. Enjoy.

Preparation

First experience with a green rooibos here…I think I like it, but the fruit flavors are so strong it’s a bit hard to tell what’s what. Product name notwithstanding, the blend doesn’t lead with “peach;” it’s fruity confetti with the strawberry and orange flavors equally evident. A little too elegant to saddle it with a Froot Loops description, but close.

this was one of the first teas that i bought and it’s been about 6 months since i’ve picked it up and tried it again. it has a very light peach smell and flavor. this tea isn’t terrible but i own other tea’s that have a lot more flavor than this one. it would probably be better iced. not a bad buy but i wont miss it when it runs out.

Preparation

Note: What I had did not bear the “Bonita” name, but this tea smells and looks the same as the plain old Peach Rooibos I purchased.

Not being a huge rooibos fan at the time, I largely purchased this tea because I was curious how green rooibos differed from the traditional red. I was surprised to find I liked it quite a bit more than the previous rooibos infusions I’d tried; not having a strong basis of comparison, I can’t comment on how well the green rooibos flavor came out but none of the advertised ingredients seemed particularly overwhelming and the cup did have a satisfying, if mild, peach flavor to it that was great for just before bedtime. Not something I’m likely to keep in stock, but I didn’t regret the purchase.
-Cash